Frank H. Walkey

Development And Evaluation Of A 21‐Item Version Of The Hopkins Symptom Checklist With New Zealand And United States Respondents

Abstract The Hopkins Symptom Checklist (HSCL) is a widely used measure of symptom distress and in particular is a valuable criterion measure in psychotherapeutic drug trials. Its reliability, validity, and sensitivity to change have been well established. However, its factor structure has been subject to much debate. In previous studies a wide range of different factor structures have been found by various researchers. The aim of the present study was to produce a short, less arduous, but acceptably reliable version of HSCL with a replicable factor structure. The factor structure which was based on a previously described, robust three-factor version of the HSCL, was established using a two-step process which began with a two-factor analysts of the largest subscales, General Feelings of Distress (GFD) and Somatic Distress (SD). This was followed by a three-factor analysis of seven items from each of three subscales. The robustness of the factor structure of the resulting scale was revealed by the factor co...

The factor structure of the eating disorders inventory

The Eating Disorders Inventory (EDI) is a promising new measure of the cognitive and behavioral characteristics of anorexia nervosa and bulimia, although the replicability of its eight subscales has not been evaluated. Therefore, a factor analysis of the EDI was carried out that used the FACTOREP procedure. The results, using non-patient responses, did not confirm the original eight subscales, but did show three clear and replicable factors to exist. It was suggested that these may be of clinical value as preliminary screening measures or as indices of response to treatment, although further validation would be required to establish their utility.

Multiple Replication of Factor Structure: A Logical Solution for a Number of Factors Problem.

A factor replication procedure which provides a solution for the numbers of factors problem for multiple scale questionnaire responses, is described and demonstrated. In the procedure a series of factor analyses are conducted in which a reduced number of factors is used for each successive rotation until a structure is found which is replicated across subject groups. The factor matching s index, which relates loadings as they fall about a series of prescribed levels, is used to compare factors in order to show the level of similarity achieved. The procedure is illustrated using the responses of three groups of subjects to the Hopkins Symptom Checklist. Results show that the five factor structure claimed by the authors of the measure is not supported by the data but that there is clear evidence of three replicable factors. It is suggested that the procedure provides the basis for a significant improvement in decisions related to the number of factors problem.

Attitudes to AIDS: A comparative analysis of a new and negative stereotype

Two propositions about attitudes, which have previously been supported with respect to the mentally ill, were examined with respect to AIDS patients. The first, that people attach a stigma to the AIDS patient, was strongly supported, and two quite independent components of the stigma were found. One of these components identified as dependence, was closely related to the attributes of typical cancer patients and coronary heart patients, while the other, identified as low moral worth, clearly distinguished the AIDS patient from the other two groups of patients. The second proposition, that attitudes to AIDS are not strongly related to age, sex and occupational background, was largely supported. However there was some evidence that males rated AIDS patients lower on moral worth than did females.

Psychological Well-Being and Quality of Care: A Factor-Analytic Examination of the Palliative Care Outcome Scale

CONTEXT The Palliative Care Outcome Scale (POS) is a widely used outcome measure in palliative care research, and has good psychometric properties. It has been used for clinical or research purposes in specialist cancer centers, nursing homes, day hospice units, and hospice settings in a growing number of countries. However, the POS has not yet been examined using factor analysis. OBJECTIVE The aim of the present study was to examine the internal factor structure of the POS. METHODS Confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses were used for secondary analysis of two existing POS data sets of British patients, most of whom were cancer patients. RESULTS We began with a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), which indicated that the POS is not a unidimensional scale. This was followed by an exploratory factor analysis that suggested two factors-one reflecting a psychological well-being dimension and the other consisting of three items relating to the standard of professional care. A similar two-factor structure also was identified in the second sample using CFA. CONCLUSION The POS appears to capture two factors, psychological status and quality of care, and to have three items that function independently (family anxiety, symptoms, and pain control). Our findings suggest that future evaluations of palliative care services should include assessment not only of symptoms and well-being or quality of life, but also of quality of care, and that unidimensional measures will not capture all relevant aspects in palliative care.

Simple Versus Complex Factor Analyses of Responses to Multiple Scale Questionnaires

Some effects of using inappropriate criteria for sufficiency of factors are discussed, and examples from the literature used to show how procedures leading to the rotation of large numbers of factors may result in fragmentation and difficulty in interpretation. Analyses of two psychometrically equivalent matrices containing an imposed scale structure led to dissimilar solutions, neither of them revealing the imposed structure, when a minimum eigenvalue of 1.00 was used as a criterion for sufficiency of factors. More conservative (two and three-factor) solutions revealed the imposed scale structure in both matrices. Comparisons with higher-order solutions showed considerable similarity between two-factor solutions and between three-factor solutions at different levels. These contrasted with substantial dissimilarities found in equivalent four-factor solutions. Though the main purpose of the paper is to outline procedures which might reasonably reduce factor fragmentation with its consequent problems of replication and interpretability, the implications of the alternative problem of Underfactoring are also briefly discussed and some solutions suggested.

Community attitudes to mental illness in New Zealand twenty-two years on

Three propositions about attitudes to mental illness derived from Nunnally (Popular Conceptions of Mental Health. Holt, Rinehart & Winston, New York, 1961) were examined with the semantic differential technique as it was used originally by Olmsted and Ordway (Final Report to National Institutes of Mental Health, 1963). Attitudes were compared between several studies using the same measures, that ranged over 22 years from 1962 to 1984. The results were remarkably consistent across all studies, indicating that the community had persistently negative attitudes towards the mentally ill and was no more likely today to want to play a major role in the care of the mentally ill than was the case more than 20 years ago. As a consequence it appears that there will need to be substantial and permanent attitude change, of a kind fleetingly observed over the period of the study, before the professional care of the mentally ill in the community may be expected to have maximum impact.

Leisure and Its Role as a Strategy for Coping with Work Stress

The purpose of this study was to determine the dimensions of leisure that were important to people coping with work-related stress. Data were provided by 695 principals and deputy principals from secondary schools throughout New Zealand who were experiencing major legislative and organizational change in the education sector. The results produced a robust, replicable, and reliable two-factor structure using FACTOREP, a factor replication procedure. It appears that leisure is best measured in terms of active-challenge and passive-recuperative dimensions when considered in relation to coping with work-related stress. The results show that for the present occupational group, the passive nature of leisure is more important for coping with work stress. These results have implications for those involved in workplace health promotion where the emphasis thus far has been on physical activity and fitness. The results also confirm the importance of determining the most appropriate number of factors to rotate.

An examination of the factor structure of the Beck Depression Inventory-II in a neurorehabilitation inpatient sample

The Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) is widely used for assessing depression in neurorehabilitation. Given the concern that the somatic items might be misleading, we examined its factor structure in 353 inpatients. Exploratory factor analysis was undertaken to compare two- to five-factor solutions. Confirmatory factor analysis was then used to test the best exploratory solutions for goodness of fit on a subsample. Both provided strong support for a general depression factor and two specific factors, one somatic and one cognitive/affective. The BDI-II provides a meaningful score of overall depression, and it can also yield two subscores-one measuring somatic symptoms and the other measuring psychological symptoms of depression. To avoid confusing the common symptoms of neurological disability with depression in neurorehabilitation, clinicians need to consider all three scores carefully. (JINS, 2009, 15, 142-147.).

The Spheres of Control scale: the identification of a clear replicable three-factor structure

Abstract The Spheres of Control scale (SOC) is a multidimensional measure of locus of control, originally designed to assess personal control, interpersonal control, and socio-political control. This scale is now in its third revision. Although Versions 1 and 2 have been scrutinised using factor analysis, no published studies have yet examined the factor structure of Version 3. Responses to the original version [SOC-1; Paulhus, D., & Christie, R. (1981). Spheres of control: An interactionist approach to the assessment of perceived control. In H.M. Lefcourts (Ed.) Research with the Locus of Control Construct (Vol. 1) Assessment methods (pp.161–188). New York: Academic Press.] and the most recent version [SOC-3; Paulhus, D., & Van Selst, M. (1990). The spheres of control scale: 10 yrs of research. Personality and Individual Differences, 11, 1029–1036] were provided by a group of 354 university students, and a principal components analysis was undertaken. The results showed a reasonable fit with the SOC construct for the original (SOC-1) scale, but not for the more recent SOC-3. A combination of scales from the two versions provided the best indication of the presence of the three theoretically derived dimensions. In a second study, Confirmatory Factor Analysis was used to examine the three factor model and four competing models. The eight indices of fit derived from the responses of 382 undergraduate students showed that the three factor structure was superior to any of the competing models.